


Darius's Guest

by MercurialStarChild



Category: The Ascendance Trilogy - Jennifer A. Nielsen
Genre: Fluff, I suppose this is an au, Jaron is a gremlin, M/M, Mathis is hot and buff, Teen+ rating because of mentions of love-making, darius is a sweet romantic mess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-27 21:09:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19797820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MercurialStarChild/pseuds/MercurialStarChild
Summary: The royal family of Carthya loves Mathis. Especially the crown prince.





	Darius's Guest

The light of the morning seeped in through thin curtains, illuminating the bedroom in a soft and hazy glow. Darius grumbled, having been roused from his sleep by the light. Eyes still closed, he shifted lazily so he could cuddle into the warm body beside him.

Wait, that was new.

Darius blinked his eyes open and rubbed the sleep from them. Then he looked at who was laying next to him. Mathis was asleep on his stomach beside him, the silky blanket they shared laying loosely over his hips and hardly covering his bare body. His strong arms were wrapped around the pillow beneath his head. Darius blinked slowly and smiled to himself. Mathis looked so serene and beautiful with the golden glow of a new day on his tan skin.

Darius recalled the night before with a smile. He had invited Mathis to stay the night, and the two shared an intimate night together for the first time since their relationship began. It had been one of the few encounters of this kind that Darius had experienced, and he was glad to have shared it with someone as special to him as Mathis.

Sitting up, the prince realized now that he had slept in, but for once, he decided that it didn't matter. He didn't have to be the crown prince when he was with Mathis. No, with him, he could just be… Darius.

There were no servants who came by to check on him. Darius assumed it was because they didn't wish to disturb the two men. Whatever reason, he was glad. He shifted so he was sitting at the edge of his bed, feet on the floor as he rubbed his tired eyes once again. His blond hair was a mess, and he pushed it out of his face with one hand.

He then heard an appreciative grunt behind him. Turning his head, Darius saw Mathis laying just as he was minutes ago, but now his olive green eyes were open, and he was gazing at the prince with a sleepy smile.

“Good morning, Prince Sunshine,” he said softly. “You look especially lovely this morning.”

Darius giggled and reached back to comb his fingers through his lover’s hair. “Good morning, dearest. Did you sleep well?”

“You mean after you and I had our late-night fun?” Mathis smirked at him. His half-awake morning smirk was especially attractive. Darius hoped to see it more often.

Mathis heaved himself up from where he lay, the blanket slipping off of his hips now. He moved to sit behind Darius and pressed a tired kiss to the crown prince's freckled shoulder. “How are you feeling?” He asked.

“Just fine, so long as I have you here with me.” He smiled back at Mathis and then moved to kiss him slowly. He turned his body to face the other man and Mathis's hands found his way to Darius's hips. Darius rested against him happily, his hands coming up and pressing on Mathis's firm chest. As he did this, his lover slowly moved to lay on his back with Darius above him. The two shared a long, lazy morning kiss, and the prince savored every moment of it.

Finally, Mathis pulled from Darius's lips and gazed at him. Darius felt his heart speed up being able to be this close to the man he loved. He hid his face in Mathis's neck and sighed happily. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“For what?”

“For last night… And this morning.” Darius cuddled close. “I want to wake up next to you all the time.”

Mathis chuckled and traced his hand up and down Darius's back slowly. “I would love that, your Highness,” he said softly. “I assure you, there will be many mornings like this one.”

Just as the two had fallen into a comfortable silence with one another, there were rapidly approaching footsteps, and then loud pounding on the door. An audible giggle was followed by the voice of the younger prince Jaron through the door. “Damon!” he called. “Wake up, sleepyhead!”

Mathis turned his attention from the door to Darius. “Damon?” He echoed with a chuckle.

Darius blushed and rolled his eyes. “It's… A weird inside joke. Now get up and get dressed.”

The prince rolled out of bed and put on a very simple outfit. He wasn't used to dressing himself without servants helping, but wasn't embarrassingly bad at it. Mathis pulled on his clothes and sat on the edge of the bed while Darius opened the door.

“What do you want--” He could hardly finish his sentence as Jaron darted into the room, having spotted Mathis and wanting to talk to him.

“Can you do your cool arrow stuff?!” The boy asked excitedly. “And show me how? Please?”

Mathis laughed and patted Jaron's shoulder. “Maybe. But only if your mom and dad say so.”

“Dad won't.”

“Okay, fine. If your mom says so.”

That was enough to get Jaron to leave. Darius sighed and sat heavily beside Mathis.

“He's chaos itself. Please don't let him shoot an arrow,” he requested tiredly.

Mathis only smiled. “Don't worry about me. I'm great with kids.”

They took the few minutes without Jaron to clean up their appearances a little bit more, and Darius made his bed look a little neater so the maids hopefully wouldn't start gossiping about what the prince and his lover has gotten up to in the night.

\----

Darius, Jaron, and Mathis were out in the courtyard. Mathis had set up a few easy targets and showed off his skilled archery. Jaron hopped up and down with excitement, constantly asking for a turn. Darius was simply sitting on a small blanket, admiring Mathis’s defined muscles and strong build as he took perfect aim at the targets.

The crown prince gazed softly at Mathis, a wide smile on his face and his eyes full of love. He was daydreaming now, imagining living the rest of his life with Mathis. Though he had a duty, being the crown prince, he was sure there would be room for Mathis in his life. Kings of the past usually had at least one partner who wasn't their spouse. He fretted that such an idea was wrong of him, but being without Mathis was a life he didn't want to love.

The prince was pulled from his thoughts at a voice behind him.

“Darius, love. Are you okay?”

Darius blinked out of his daydream and looked at his mother. Erin was standing nearby, and she sat neatly on the blanket beside him. She had a knowing, amused smile.

“What are you thinking about, love?”

“Er-- thinking? Me? Uh, nothing in particular.”

The Queen laughed, then looked over to where Mathis was being very careful as he showed little Jaron how to properly hold a bow. “He's a cute one. You both were lucky to be able to meet.”

Darius's shoulders relaxed. “Yeah.” He was glad to be able to comfortably talk about his feelings for Mathis to his mother. He still feared that his father wouldn't allow it to go on for much longer. Then again, it's not like Eckbert married royalty like he was meant to. He cleared his throat and mind as he spoke again. “Mathis is… Amazing.”

“I can tell he means a lot to you.”

“Yeah?”

“Of course. After all, you were cuddled up to him, fast asleep all morning. And you've hardly had such a close relationship with another, as far as I know.”

Darius blushed deeply. “Saints, you know about that, then?”

Erin chuckled. “It only gets worse when I tell you I heard it second hand. Our servants love to gossip.”

Darius groaned and hid his face. His mother rubbed a hand over his back. “Don't worry about it, dear. And don't be afraid to talk to me about your relationship with him. You're old enough now to feel comfortable sharing these things with your dear old mother.”

He leaned into Erin’s side a little bit and looked up at her, his face still red. He ran a hand through his hair. “Thanks, mom.”

His attention turned back to Mathis as Erin kissed her son's head and stood once more. Jaron had caught a glimpse of her and dropped the bow, running to cling to his mother's leg.

Mathis knelt to quickly recover the bow and brush off the dirt. Darius walked across the grass to stand by his side.

“I don't think he learned much,” Mathis said.

“Oh, Jaron's more perceptive than you think. He'll have better aim than you by tomorrow morning.”

Mathis laughed, then scratched his stubbled chin as another thought popped into his mind.

“Say, Darry. Speaking of tomorrow morning, do you think I'll be able to stick around for that?”

“Oh-- I mean, will your father be okay with that?” Darius blinked at his partner, wanting him to stay but not wanting to inconvenience someone else.

“Oh, he'll understand.” Mathis waved at the air and shrugged. “Besides, your bed is much more comfortable than mine. And you're wonderful company in the darkest hours of the night.”

The prince lightly punched Mathis’s arm, cheeks red once again. “Hush.”

And that was that. Mathis stayed another night at the castle, the royal family more than happy to be able to spend time with him. Darius more than anyone.


End file.
